The following discussion of the background to the invention is intended to facilitate an understanding of the present invention only. It should be appreciated that the discussion is not an acknowledgement or admission that any of the material referred to was published, known or part of the common general knowledge of the person skilled in the art in any jurisdiction as at the priority date of the invention.
Various articles have been developed for mounting to vertical surfaces, such as walls. Often such articles are attached to the vertical surfaces by permanent attaching systems, such as hooks, brackets, and the like. Unfortunately, such articles cannot be easily moved or when removed from the vertical surface they leave undesirable marks.
Other articles have been developed that are attached to vertical surfaces using an adhesive or a tape utilizing releasable adhesives. Unfortunately, such tapes and adhesives are made for general uses, such as to hold a stationary object that has little or no interaction with users other than to place or remove an object from a component. It is also often difficult to remove the article from the vertical surface. In addition, such releasable adhesives and tapes often do not have the strength to secure a particular article to the vertical surface while allowing the article to be easily removed, transported and reattached to a vertical surface at another location.
One problem associated with releasable adhesives is that when they are used to secure relatively rigid or semi-rigid components to a vertical surface, they often cause damage to the surface when removed. When a releasable adhesive is used to secure a flexible component, such as component formed from paper or a relatively thin film or sheet, the component is capable of flexing allowing the user to peel the releasable adhesive at an angle thereby avoiding or minimizing damage to the vertical surface. Unfortunately, when the releasable adhesive is used to attach a rigid or semi-rigid component (or a rigid component attached to a film or flexible sheet which is then attached to the vertical surface by a releasable adhesive), the substrate near the component is unable to flex or bend sufficiently to allow the user to peel the releasable adhesive at an angle which will minimize damage to the vertical surface. It has also been found that this inability to flex or bend results in the adhesive under the component to be released in its entirety and suddenly which often results in damage to the vertical surface.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to have an article, such as an article used for entertainment and has substantial interaction with a user, that can be removably attached to a vertical surface, that has sufficient strength to maintain the article on the vertical surface during use, that can be easily removed from the vertical surface without damaging the surface, transported to another location and remounted to a vertical surface at that location.